


You're so much more than the Hero of Hyrule

by StarbyteWrites



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hylians can move their ears, Link loves horses, M/M, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Canon, Selectively Mute Link (Legend of Zelda), Sheikah slate headcanon, Sign Language, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-03-13 17:27:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28532181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarbyteWrites/pseuds/StarbyteWrites
Summary: After the defeat of Calamity Ganon, Zelda sends Link on a mission to help the people of Hyrule, hoping the people of Hyrule will be able to help Link. What will he discover about himself during this journey?
Relationships: Link/Prince Sidon
Kudos: 22





	You're so much more than the Hero of Hyrule

Link sighed as he forced his body out of his not so comfortable excuse for a bed. He’d slept on more comfortable cave floors he believed, but he continued to sleep in the damp castle room to be in close proximity to the Princess. He sighed once more, grabbing his Sheikah slate from the rock he’d been using as a makeshift side table. Zelda, of course, had tried to provide him with a cushier room, “fit for a hero” she had said, but he had declined every offer. There were much more important parts of the castle to rebuild before they worried about providing him with proper quarters. Besides, he didn’t mind the rush of fresh air through the gaping hole in the wall like others would. He could defend himself, too.

He silently expressed gratitude to the Goddess for the slate in his hands, scrolling through his inventory; selecting an apple and having it materialize into his awaiting hand in a small flash of blue light. It had been weird, at first, getting used to the heavy load the slate could bear and feeling like he was leaving things behind constantly, but now Link wasn’t sure if he’d be able to live without it. His favorite feature was of course having to do with the food storage; being able to eternally keep food fresh, and rematerialize it as hot as the second he had pulled his meals from the cooking pot. It was convenient to be able to stow away metal weapons in vicious storms, easily swap gear in seconds time, and spare the heavy burden of a large knapsack on his journeys. He was forever indebted to the Princess for letting him keep the slate on his hip, even after the defeat of Calamity Ganon. He’d like to think it was a token of her appreciation, or perhaps it was that Impa had gifted her another slate after her return and it would have been a burden to clean out his inventory. He liked to believe it was the former option.

Taking large bites of his apple, he wandered out of the castle, giving slight, polite nods to the guards who seemed too intimidated by him to speak when he was around. He headed to the stable, where he went first thing every morning. He nodded in casual greeting to the stable hands, who busied themselves feeding and turning out horses to the pasture so they could muck stalls. One knowingly teased him that he didn’t need to come out here just to take care of his horses, that they’d handle them just fine seeing it was their job, and he just smiled slightly in response.

He again silently thanked the goddess that the Princess hadn’t taken control of his favorite horse upon her return. It was her right after all, the horse most likely a descendant from the royal white horses of the past. She was beautiful, swifter and stronger than any other horse that had given him rides during his journey. He had named her Song, a simple name for a horse that glided over green grass like a sweet melody. He smiled as she whinnied excitedly as his approach, and he used his slate to materialize a swift carrot into his hand, which she devoured greedily. He softly patted her nose with a smile, and turned her out to run with the other horses. He paused for a moment to watch her, thinking that the next time he had a chance he would braid some flowers into her hair, how the stable hands around Hyrule had shown him how to do. It suited her.

His other horse that he had decided to keep with him was a big stallion, the one who caused whispers of wonder wherever he went, and was rumored to be a descendant of Ganons’ warhorse. Link knew that it was welcome that he was here to take care of his large friend, as he didn’t tend to listen to anyone else; and frankly, the workers were terrified of him. Link wasn’t afraid of the giant horse, who he had dubbed Gumbo after an unfortunate typo on his registration paperwork he had filled out after subduing the giant. Taming him had been hard work, and while Jumbo was a perfectly appropriate name for a horse double the height of any other horse Link had ever seen, food had been on his mind. He whistled at him as he approached his stall and Gumbo turned to look at him, a mischievous look in his eyes. His straw haired rider grinned, and offered him two swift carrots, which Gumbo took quickly. Link could have sworn the little nip of his palm was how he was being scolded for waking up later than usual this morning. Gumbo was simply the most intelligent horse he’d ever met, staring at him knowingly when he decided to use his voice to speak to him on their adventures. He swore sometimes that the horse understood him. He turned him out, and Gumbo responded by flicking his tail in response towards the Hylians face; rearing his head in what could only be assumed was laughter afterwards. Link smiled, his usual expression while in the stable, and got to work cleaning stalls.

Link worked diligently in the stable until a ‘ding’ from his slate snapped him out of his trance. When Zelda had received her second slate, they quickly realized that they could message between the slates. Link appreciated this, since he could communicate from a distance, and without speaking at all.

‘Good morning, Link! If you wouldn’t mind, could you stop by the throne room for a bit? I like to speak to you in person! Xx Zelda’

Link frowned lightly, but responded quickly.

‘Sure. I’ll be there after I’m done with the horses.’ He paused for a moment, wondering if anyone but himself could put off a talk with the Princess to care for horses without punishment. Probably not. He sent the message anyway.

\--

“…And that’s what we’ve learned about the guardians! Isn’t that exciting, Link?!”

Link nodded unenthusiastically, gaze focused out the window, elbow on the small table and chin in his hand. Zelda stayed silent for a moment, before taking a sip from her teacup, noticing Link hadn’t so much as touched his. Her ears drooped slightly, setting down her cup gently.

“You know Link, you don’t need to stay at the castle, if you don’t want to.”

Link sighed, a common theme for today it seemed, and didn’t move to meet her gaze.

“You aren’t meant to be cooped up in this castle… I see that now. If you still insist on continuing to serve… I could easily send you on some solo missions. Plenty of time to do whatever you’d like to do between tasks…” She watched carefully for his reaction, speaking slow and deliberate, choosing words carefully.

Link turned and looked at her, raising his hands to sign.

‘ _I am your personal knight.’_ He paused. ‘ _My place is here.’_

“You know that isn’t true!” Zelda hit the table with a closed fist, rattling the cups and saucers. “You look _miserable_ here, and the major threat has passed! You’ve _done enough._ ”

Link continues to stare at her, eyes slightly widened.

“Link, I… you’re a _person._ You’re more than the Hero of Hyrule…” Her ears suddenly perk, and he hit her fist into her own hand. “I’ve got it!”

Link raises his hands to question her, but she dismisses him with a wave of her hand as she stands.

“Link! I’ve got a mission for you, since you insist on continuing to serve!” She smiles widely and excited glimmer in her eyes. “The blood moon has stopped rising… That means the lands are littered with monsters that are inhibiting us from rebuilding. You know these lands better than anyone, and are certainly more qualified to fight than the knights that are barely into their training. I also need things delivered to different settlements… Ones you’re much more familiar with than me. I want you to _go,_ Link. Travel. _Help people._ That’s your purpose, Hyrule is your place.”

Link stared at her, seemingly frozen in place, a small blush dusting his cheeks; ears drooped low, slowly opening his mouth to speak. It came as little more than a whisper.

“Really…?”

Zelda smiled a warm, familiar smile, and nodded. “Of course Link… and besides…!” She perked up even more, if that was possible. “We can message each other on our slates whenever we want! …And besides, Link… more than anything… I want you to be happy.”

A smile crept onto Links face and he nodded, more enthusiastically than he meant to, and Zelda covered her mouth and let out a giggle. “We’ll get you set up to head out tomorrow, if that isn’t too sudden?”

Link jumped up out of the dainty chair and pulled his hands into fists, grinning.

“I’ll take it that tomorrow is just fine.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading the first chapter of my fic! Lots of headcanons in this one folks. I love the concept of the Sheikah slate being able to hold and produce items at will!! Also these are the names for these particular horses for my most recent play through of BOTW :) I love comments and kudos! Feel free to ask questions, offer suggestions, and definitely let me know if there are any mistakes!


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